Conventionally, in order to ensure the reliability of a compressor that configures the refrigeration cycle of an air conditioning apparatus or the like, a compressor protection device that prevents an abnormal rise in the temperature inside the compressor has been used. The compressor protection device is configured from a temperature detecting mechanism and an operation shutdown mechanism, the example. The temperature detecting mechanism is attached to the compressor body and measure the temperature inside the compressor. The operation shutdown mechanism performs an action to protect the compressor by shutting down the operation of the compressor in a case where the temperature that the temperature detecting mechanism has detected has exceeded a predetermined temperature.
It has been conventionally common for the temperature detecting mechanism to measure the surface temperature of a casing of the compressor or the surface temperature of a discharge tube that sends compressed refrigerant to a refrigerant circuit outside the compressor. For example, in the compressor described in Japanese Unexamined Publication No. 2009-197621, there is disposed a temperature sensor holding mechanism for closely fixing a temperature sensor to the surface of the top portion of the casing of the compressor. With this temperature sensor holding mechanism, the temperature sensor can be reliably installed in a predetermined position on the surface of the top portion of the casing of the compressor. Additionally, an action to protect the compressor is performed on the basis of the casing surface temperature that has been measured by the temperature sensor. Further, in the compressor described in Japanese Patent No. 2,503,699, the temperature of the compressed refrigerant inside the discharge tube is measured by a temperature sensor that is fixed to the surface of the discharge tube of the compressor. Additionally, an action to protect the compressor is performed on the basis of the temperature of the compressed refrigerant that has been measured by the temperature sensor.